Red Will Be My Escape
by White-Tainted-Red
Summary: Naruto Uzumaki, a High School freshman, just can not deal with his label. The Fourth Hokage's missing son. With the pressure becoming almost unbearable, will Naruto change for others? Or will they change for him?


**Hi, guys. A new SasuNaru story, YAY! I suggest listening to the Crash soundtrack song, ''A Really Good Cloak'' or ''Sense of Touch'' For the beginning part. It definitely makes me cry. But then again, Crash is a horribly sad movie that is so amazing and has so much meaning and emotion behind it that you can't help but cry, despite how macho you are. So I suggest watching it, friends. It has a really powerful message. This whole car crash part was based on it. So you're probably not reading this anymore, but hope you guys enjoy. Write me a review, will you? Love you.**

Red Will Be My Escape

The screech of tires. Metal crashing against each other. Screams. Pain. Fear. Sadness. A 2003 Ford Mustang skidded across the road, overturning and finally coming to a complete stop several feet away from the disaster. Almost immediately, the car it had crashed into gave a threatening roar as smoke rose from the engine. Standing in the middle of the road, facial expressions varying from shock to sudden urgency, was a red haired freshman. Beside him was a pale young man, about the same age, with charcoal coloured hair and equally dark eyes.

The smallest of the pair, the red head, broke into a sprint towards the overturned car. As he approached it, he realized a liquid was pooling beneath the car. Judging by the smell, he could tell it was gasoline. His eyes widened in the sudden realization. Casting a quick glance to the other car, he watched the cloud of smoke increase in size with every second. Throwing aside his own protection, he fell to the floor and examined the inside of the car. An old man was in the front seat, and if he listened closely, he could hear sobs coming from the back as well.

"Konohamoru..." A voice croaked. He turned to look at the elder man who was gasping for air. Blood was steadily flowing from his mouth, dripping onto the roof of the car.

"Sir, can you move?" The red head called, reaching his upper body into the car through the broken window. He flinched slightly as he felt jagged edges poke into his sides.

"My grandson. Please, help him!" The old man coughed. The young boy squirmed the rest of his body into the car, and looked into the back seat. A small boy, about the age of 5, was struggling to get out of his safety chair. He didn't appear to be hurt, just frightened beyond belief.

"It's okay. Its okay, I'm going to help you. Just hold... still." The red head soothed, reaching over the boy's lap and tugging on the seatbelt. "It's... stuck! Wait. Just a second, okay?"

He reached into his pocket and fished out a pocket knife. He kept his eyes trained on the crying youngster, murmuring reassuring things. He gave the boy a small smile as the strings began to fray.

"I'm going to get you and your old man outta' here, okay? Then we can go and get some ice cream, how does that sound?"

"G-grandpa will be o-okay?" The boy stuttered, his chest shuddering as he breathed out.

"He'll be good as new, once the paramedics see him! So what's your name?" The red head smiled, pushing a little harder on the knife.

"K-konohamoru. What a-about y-yours?"

"Naruto. I'm almost done, alright?"

Konohamoru gave a small nod. "Old man, are you still okay?" Naruto shouted to the man in the front. He heard a sharp intake of breath. "Y-yes. Thank-you, so much. Please, g-get Konohamoru out."

Naruto caught the boy in his arms when he fell. Konohamoru crawled towards the front first, gasping at the blood his grandpa had lost.

"N-NARUTO. HELP GRANDPA!" He screamed, tears filling his warm eyes. He reached a hand out to his grandpa and began to stroke his cheek, ignoring the red liquid that stained his fingertips. Naruto looked back at the other car, and he froze. They couldn't control the fire. It was raging out of control.

"Konohamoru, I need you to get out of the car, and run to those men over there, okay?" Naruto said, pushing the boy towards the window. "N-NO! Grandpa! Please don't go! I need you to be here with me! GRANDPA."

Naruto could feel the heat surrounding him. Suffocating him. He felt his heart quicken. He was going to die. _Maybe so, but I will not let this little boy die_. He wrapped his arms around the boy, and exited through the window, taking a deep gulp of air before handing the boy over to a policeman. He ran back to the car, entering the same way, gasping frantically as he tried to get the old man out of his position.

It felt like it happened in slow motion. A spark landed on a trail of gasoline, and soon the fire was heading their way. He felt hands wrap around his ankles, pulling him out of the car. He punched and kicked, and managed to break free, but before he could climb back into the vehicle someone held on to him tightly. The old man turned slowly to look at him, tears running freely down his cheeks as the flames engulfed the car. 'Thank you' the man mouthed, before giving one last forgiving smile. The corners of his eyes wrinkled, and he was engulfed in flames with the most peaceful expression on his face.

Naruto shut his eyes, before letting out a loud scream. He fell to his knees as the car exploded, intense heat colliding with his face. The blast of air pushed him backwards, and he landed on the ground next to his worst enemy as well as best friend, Sasuke Uchiha. His heart throbbed painfully and a lump formed in his throat, preventing him from breathing. He gasped for air, holding on tightly to his knees.

"Naruto. It's okay, it's okay. You were so brave... don't blame yourself." He leaned into the strong arms that were wrapped around him.

"I-I... I c-could've... I-I... K-konohamoru!" He cried, shaking his head. _Get a grip, Naruto. People die all the time._

Sasuke only held him tighter, glaring at students passing by. "Konohamoru... the boy, am I right? He's fine. He's not hurt. Not even a scratch... thanks to you, that is." Sasuke whispered in his ear, soothingly rubbing circles on his back.

"He's... h-he's okay..." He whimpered. Sasuke stood up and offered a hand for his friend to help himself up with.

"Yes. Do you want to go talk to him?" Sasuke asked, putting his hands into his pocket. Naruto nodded slowly, using the back of his hand to wipe away his tears. They walked together towards an ambulance stationed not too far away.

"K-konohamoru?" Naruto whispered, looking past a paramedic to see the small boy wrapped in a blanket.

"Naruto...granpa's g-gone!" Konohamoru screamed, his eyes shedding new tears.

"I know. I tried so hard, Konohamoru. I promise you... please forgive me." Naruto said, looking earnest. Konohamoru glared darkly for a couple minutes before tilting his head.

"I forgive y-you, I guess. C-can I ask you a q-question?"

"Sure, of course!"

"W-will the old m-man go to Heaven? I w-want him t-to have the bestest house, and m-momma says H-Heaven is n-nice."

"...Of course he will! He's going to get a big house with a pool. He's going to have maids to bring him cold drinks and make his dinner, and he'll have friends there too!"

"A-are you sure?"

"As sure as I'll ever be. As a matter of fact, _my _mom told me that Heaven is the _nicest _place to be."

"S-she did?"

"Yep!"

"I-I'm glad."

"Me too. How are you getting home, buddy?"

"Papa's c-coming. He s-said momma was t-too sad."

"Alright. Do you want me and Sasuke to wait with you?"

"N-no. It's o-okay, really."

"I'll see you sometime soon then, okay?"

"B-bye, Naruto."

"Later, Konohamoru."

-x-

The day had started off quite slowly for Naruto, and seeing as Sasuke was in most of the advanced classes, they barely saw each other at school. So when they bumped into each other in the hallway, they acted like the awkward teenagers they were.

"Hey, Sasuke..." Naruto said, breaking the silence. He toyed with the cover of one of his textbooks before looking back up at the Uchiha.

"Naruto." The boy greeted, nodded his head. They stood quietly for a couple seconds before Sasuke asked the most un-Uchiha like question possible.

"How are you feeling today? I was worried you'd be all depressed." Even Naruto froze at the sudden inquiry.

"I... I'm feeling fine. A little sad, maybe, but nothing too bad..." Naruto whispered, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. "Uh, I don't know why I said that." The raven haired teen said, turning away to hide the blush tainting his cheeks.

"I-I'm glad you asked?" Naruto gave a low chuckle before glancing around at his surroundings. The halls were quiet. _The halls were quiet?_

''Shit, Sasuke. We're late.'' He shouted, clutching his books tighter.

''Let's just... skip. I'm not really feeling up to classes today anyways.'' Sasuke mumbled. He looked back up, as if something had piqued his interest.

''Hey, Naruto? Your hair... did you get highlights yesterday or something?''

''No... why?'' The red head asked, sheepishly running a hand through his hair.

''Your hair is red, but I can clearly see a strand of blond sticking out over there.'' Sasuke pointed out. He motioned to the red head's forehead, examining the boy's reaction carefully. And man, was it a reaction.

''What? No fucking way! You've got to be kidding me! Where's the nearest bathroom?''

''The boys' bathroom... second door to your right.'' Sasuke replied, watching the red head prance around. He followed the boy into the bathroom, not bothering to ask why he was freaking out. Naruto went to stand in front of the mirror, and visibly paled at the sight of the blond streak. He quickly turned around, and seemed to debate what to say to Sasuke.

''Sasuke... could you... no, you should... turn around? No, you need to see... but what if... no, you wouldn't. Sasuke...''

''Just do whatever you need to do, dobe.''

''The thing is Sasuke... I'm naturally blond. I... I've worn a wig since before I could remember.'' Sasuke arched an eyebrow, but didn't comment. He had guessed as much. The red head- _no, blond-_ reached up and gently removed the wig, exposing his sunny golden spikes.

''The reason is... I don't like being labelled as-''

''The Fourth Hokage's missing son.'' Sasuke finished for him. He was shocked by his friend's dramatic change in appearance, and how much he looked like the Fourth, but would never show it.

''Sasuke... you can't tell _anyone._ Promise me.''

''...dobe.''

''Sasuke-teme. _Promise._''

''I promise.''

-x-

**Soooo. Yeah. Hope this was alright. I know I'm taking on too many stories at a time, but I'm losing interest in my current pairings. I must have ADD. So please review. Love you guys.** **- WTR**


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